December 30, 2017

During my last post, I forgot to mention that my whole family had braces this year. Yup, even me! Since I don't care about appearance, one may ask why I would do that to myself..... Well back up!

When I was a kid my teeth were so bad, I mean scary to look at bad. I asked my Mom, ahem, Begged my Mom for braces. Little did I know the torture that would follow. 18+ extractions, a retainer for years, and Braces for 2yrs. But my 18yr old smile was perfect (for me)... I thought I was done with that nonsense for life.

However, my pallet was still small, my jaw would lock, bite was off, I developed horrible TMJ and pretty much spent my adult life cutting everything in to small pieces to eat.

At one point the headaches became so bad, I went to see a few specialists... They all claimed that the original Ortho and Surgeons while getting rid of too many of my teeth to "make room" never properly fixed my jaw or the roof of my mouth while it was still growing. They said I would now need my jaw broken, wired shut, more extractions, and then braces. Oh no no no!!!! Oh H-E-Double hockey sticks NO! For years as my teeth continued to move, I heard this.

But then I became Veg; my jaw stopped locking, headaches went away, and outside of a few crooked teeth continuing to move, I just went on with my life. Then I got pregnant and my face changed, then I lost a ton of weight and my face changed. One day I looked in the mirror and realized my teeth were starting to pivot straight out of the gum line. Oh No No No!!!

Wait a minute.. Back up... By now, the teen had braces and I saw the miraculous things this Ortho was able to do for him so he'd never suffer the way I did. The husband got a set of braces because after 46ish years, one of his baby teeth finally fell out. For real!! Apparently he still has like 3 baby teeth that never got replaced. Anywho...he got braces to fill the gap vs. getting an implant. Score!! It worked.

And that is when I said, "Hey doc... What is your opinion of this crazy mouth of mine?" He took one look and said: "I wouldn't give you surgery even if you asked for it.. 10 months of braces, we can adjust your teeth so you can keep them longer, expand your pallet, and fix your bite". He was honest and said: "I won't fix your jaw, my goal will be to save your teeth and fix your smile, if that is your goal than we can make this work"

I left and thought.... "But my smile doesn't need fixing. I don't care about aesthetics, I like my smile, it is goofy and me" and decided I'd put it off as long as possible.

THEN.... I saw my Dad and realized he'd lost most if not all of his teeth. Wake up Call much? Then I remembered what happened to my Mom and the pain she went through with root canal after root canal which we now know may aid in cancer growth. No Thank You!!!

So the day we got home from our Florida visit, I made my braces appointment, the money gods aligned, and the rest is history.

Which brings us to present day. I'm 5 months in, all of my teeth are back where they belong, my bite is happy, and perfectly straight. I have no idea how a tooth that was higher than all the other teeth can now be level to them or how the ones that had begun to turn sideways are now right ways. But alas, the guy is a miracle worker.

He is now trying to widen my upper pallet with braces alone, so each month my bite changes again and I currently feel like I have a major lisp when I speak. My T's, S's and F's all sound the same, and I feel like I'm slurping all the time, which drives me nutty so I stopped making coaching videos for a bit.

But thankfully with coconut oil swishes, aloe swishes, clove, and tea tree oils, I've experienced very little pain and look forward to getting these bad boys off in 2018. Don't worry I won't post pictures of the brace face!!!

The husband got his off in about 10 months and the teen will have his off by February (hopefully)... So 2018 will be the year my house is braces free, and by August, we will have a bathroom full of retainers. Can't Wait! *smile*

So what have I learned? Second, third, and fourth opinions are necessary! Veg eating and lots of greens took care of my TMJ. When it comes to teeth, there is more than just visual, and that mouth health is equal to body health!!

December 28, 2017

Woah!!! So I'm pretty sure I only post here anymore when it is a year in review or heartfelt reflection. This blog has kind of become like an old friend that I turn to for inspiration, humor at past situations, and to share what my year has been like. I also often look to try and remember a story to share with someone, or see a date that something happened when reflecting. Similar to that friend who you only talk to once in a while, know that no one else actually gets the conversation, but without them you are missing something in your life. The person you call to help settle a debate because they are the only person that would remember... Yes, that is this blog!

In the past few years, I've thought about posting more, I've mentioned here that I would post more, and I became excited when there was an app built so that I could post quickly from my phone. I even did that for a bit. But the desire to keep this up along with all of my other social media personas made this one take a different priority and become that friend that slowly moves away but you still care about and won't get rid of completely. Someday maybe Vegmom will rise again in a new and improved way. But for now, it will just be my distant friend, with no broken promises and the possibility that we will reunite every couple years.

So here we are at the end of 2017.... And I've thought of my old blog friend every day for the past few weeks. Finally today, I took a peak at some old posts! I laughed, got emotional, and smiled beyond measure. I saw comments from my Mom that are like a legacy left. I saw comments from friendships lost and friendships gained through the years. And posts about my family that I had since forgotten ever writing. Having this journal of sorts documenting the past 12ish years has been such a blessing, and I wouldn't trade the time spent on typing these words for anything. And for that, I shall complete a year in review... because well... That is what I do here!

2017 has been pretty incredible! Politically and world news wise, I can't begin to comprehend the Bizzaro land that has been created this year. But in my own little world, WOAH!!!!! 2017 was incredible. I last posted in April over here! But so much has happened since then!

The teen will be starting Drivers Ed next month and will be 15 in two months

I trained and completed a 1/2 Marathon... WHAT???? Oh yes, I did that again! Ca-Razy!

We went to Florida over the summer and stayed at the most beautiful hotel room, with the most amazing view. We saw sharks, dolphins, sting rays, sea turtles, and manatees right outside our balcony. It was definitely the highlight of my life.

He also went on his first ever solo trip with his Dad, and they had an absolute blast exploring northern Michigan and the UP after seeing grandparents.

We've been to climbing facilities, ropes courses, escape places.

The teen has been to social parties, started fencing club, and is now officially a D&D geek.

High School started and has been incredible for him. He's excelling at everything and even with Teentude, he is making an impact, and learning so much about life....

Our little miss princess pup is still on the homeopathic wagon and doing great. She pretty much has me laughing every day.

I officially made it through my head injury, finished two rowing competitions, three 5k distances, and the winter half marathon.

I did get my Pull-up as challenged by the teen (I'm still working on the consistency of this one), and he PR'd his 5K by 25 minutes. the boy is a beast, and constantly trying new things to push his strength.

My books are still in several libraries and stores around our town, and had three more book signing events this year. Which were awesome!

The husband is still doing his thing as we continue to be lunar opposites, but we've passed the 26.5 year marriage mark, and I'm learning more each day what marriage truly consists of vs. the ideals that people seem to think is perfection. While we don't agree on much, we do still agree that our strange ideal is working for us. As the truth isn't about perfection, but about life.

As for that corporate wellness contract that I signed??? Not only did we get extended through the end of 2017 but we also got the 2018 contract, which is now officially signed and I absolutely can not wait to get started. There will be approximately 8000+ people either coached by me or the coaches that I have the opportunity to mentor each and every month. The thought of this is simply mind boggling but worth the years of toil and trouble to reach more people and find a community of like minded coaches who have the same mission.

Of course, I still have personal clients as well, and watching them change their lives along with that of their families has been such an incredible blessing. Sometimes I look at my "job" and think, "How in the world did I get here?".... Seriously a dream come true with so much more in the making. But it all started with Vegmom.... Did I mention, this is all Ca-Razy to me???

With priorities changing, I've had to give up the youth classes and fitness playgrounds around October of this year. But several of my young athletes are now in the adult classes and I get to workout with them on days like today which was just awesome. This has been a huge lesson in letting go, and having faith, but I couldn't be prouder of those kids.

I'm still getting my craft on too, as I want to walk the talk and keep growing my creative outlet. I seriously feel like when we stop being creative in what ever avenue we choose, than we stop living. (That is from April but still true).... I have made a ton of cards, doodled, colored, painted, and even had some fun drawing.

As for writing, I've been really big in to the social media outlets lately. Both to promote my own brand, inspire others, and promote share/build content for all the events and classes I've been teaching. So I haven't kept up with any of my blogs lately, but do have ideas for a second & third book in the making and am still writing guest posts for others. (From April but still true and hasn't changed)

I got to see the Meteor Shower with the Hubs earlier this month, which was sooooo incredibly magical. I'd never seen a shooting star before, and that night, I saw almost 20 of them. It wasn't really "shower" like... More of a Spit here and spit there, but still incredibly cool.

We also got to see the full total Eclipse with our teen and all of those that go to his school. Yes, his was the only school still open that day, but I was so glad and what a wonderful learning experience for them. We only saw totality for a few moments, and I was so sidetracked by the reaction of the kids then mesmerized by the sky that I missed everything happening on the ground, but seriously the coolest thing EVER!

While touring facilities for the corporate wellness initiatives, I also had the opportunity to drive through three states, see the Mississippi River, and cotton fields in all of their splendor.

Lastly, I was sure to take a few trips up to the mountains to see some of the most beautiful Fall colors I'd ever experienced.

My "Word" for 2017 was "Opportunity"! I seriously had so many opportunities to see, do, feel, hear, and be, that it couldn't have been a more perfect word!

So with another year coming to a close, I honestly couldn't have asked for any more magical moments, even if I'd requested them myself, and I could have never expected such goodness to unfold when this year started.

Yes, 2017 was full of horrible hurricanes, insane fires, earthquakes, tsunamis, political insanity, and tragedy, but I still truly with all of my heart believe, that each of us can make a difference in our own way. And each of us can choose to find the good in our own lives, then share, inspire, and bring good to the world. My mission in life is to help people find their way through health, wellness, and happiness but I can't do that if my own life doesn't present the same truth.

Heading in to 2018, my word for the year is "AMAZING".... And I'm pretty sure Amazing it will be. I can feel it in my bones!!!!

If you happen to see this out in Blog world, I'd love to hear what your word is, how your year has gone, and what you are excited about!

For now Vegmom land, I shall sign off and won't promise anything about posting, but can't wait to check back in and share how much things have changed sometime in the future. Until then, may you have a wonderful New Year filled with all the smiles you can muster and create the change YOU wish to see in your life and the world around you.